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"The replacement now will remove the risk of an unplanned closure or weight restriction which would be significantly more disruptive to road users.

"We are investing approximately £2.5 million to replace the bridge. It will be the same dimensions and design as the existing structure."

Residents were surprised to hear in February that the new bridge will not be widened and will be a like-for-like replacement of the old one, though there will be new surfacing to the road and an improvement to the existing side walls.

The railway bridge in New Pond Road will be replaced (Image: Steve Porter)

According to Godalming resident Jenny Barnes, the current bridge is only just wide enough for two lorries to pass each other, which she said sometimes leads to vehicles or the bridge being damaged.

Network Rail explained: "Surrey County Council (SCC) has informed us that there would be significant financial costs to widen the bridge which are unfortunately beyond its economic reach at this time.

"Network Rail is not responsible for funding the highway widening. Surrey County Council undertook a traffic survey which laid out that there was not a strong enough safety and economic case to invest further funding to widen the bridge."

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A spokesman for SCC said in February: "We're facing severe financial pressure due to rising need for services like social care and falling government funding, and as such it would not be appropriate for us to fund expanding the bridge when only a small number of pedestrians use it."

Work to replace the bridge has been delayed several times since it was first proposed in 2014, in part due to public complaints over a lack of consultation and disruption to traffic.

There will be a clearly signed diversion route in place during the works. The diversions can also be viewed on SCC's website.

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